Extending I-94 after passport renewal

[Shikhanshu Agarwal]

My wife's H1B is valid until 9/15/2017. She traveled to India in April 2016 and while returning her I-94 expiry was marked 2/28/2017 since that was her passport expiration date at that moment.
Since then, she has renewed her passport from SFO embassy.

Can the I-94 be extended now to match H1B expiry date, without having to leave USA and re-enter again? She already has been to India and there are no plans to visit again before 2/28/2017.

Any suggestions?

[raghvi]

My wife's H1B is valid until 9/15/2017. She traveled to India in April 2016 and while returning her I-94 expiry was marked 2/28/2017 since that was her passport expiration date at that moment.
Since then, she has renewed her passport from SFO embassy.

Can the I-94 be extended now to match H1B expiry date, without having to leave USA and re-enter again? She already has been to India and there are no plans to visit again before 2/28/2017.

Any suggestions?

Yes. File form i539. It will take USD 290+ postal charges, and 3-5 Months if all paperwork is complete.

This is my opinion not legal advice.

[Shikhanshu Agarwal]

Yes. File form i539. It will take USD 290+ postal charges, and 3-5 Months if all paperwork is complete.

This is my opinion not legal advice.

Are you serious? So I need to do an entire H1B renewal just for this?

I guess the other option is to cross the US-Mexico border and get the new I-94 while coming back in? Has anyone done this?

[raghvi]

Are you serious? So I need to do an entire H1B renewal just for this?

I guess the other option is to cross the US-Mexico border and get the new I-94 while coming back in? Has anyone done this?

Unfortunately, yes for an H1 I-94 extension i129 needs to be filed. I have heard mixed success cases in getting renewed I-94 by traveling to a neighboring country and returning.

This is my opinion not legal advice.